1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle front structure including a hood edge.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a hood edge installed at a vehicle front for receiving a front end edge of an engine hood for opening and closing an engine room is known. The hood edge is a resin plate molded by a metal mold. For example, JP 9-39835 A discloses an engine hood molded to have a gentle curve inclining to a vehicle front direction (hereinafter simply referred to as “gentle curve”).
In addition, on a back face side of the hood edge molded in such the gentle curve, there are formed a rear end edge extending part, extending downward from a rear end edge of the hood edge, fixed to a mounting beam and a front end edge extending part extending rearward from the front end edge on which a front grille is mounted (corresponding to “step 12” in JP 9-39835 A). The reason why the rear end edge extending part of the hood edge is formed to extend downward is that there is a possibility in that the rear end edge extending part may touch the engine hood if it is assumed that the rear end edge extending part is on a path of opening and closing operation of the engine hood disposed behind the rear end edge extending part.
The rear end edge extending part and the front end extending part are inclined such that tips thereof approach to each other. Accordingly, when the hood edge is produced with the metal mold, demolding is performed by sliding a piece of the mold. More specifically, the mold can be removed by sliding the piece of the mold because the hood edge having a gentle curve can bend to such an extent that the rear end edge extending part climbs over protruding parts in the mold by sliding the piece of the mold rearward.
However, there may be a case where the hood edge is formed in an upward protruding shape, which may be made in a case where the shape of the hood edge is a steep slope (hereinafter simply referred to as “steep slope”), a case where a length in front-rear direction is short, etc. When such the hood edge having the upward protruding shape is produced, though the piece of the mold is slid rearward, it is difficult to cause the rear end edge extending part climbs over protruding parts in the mold.
Accordingly, when the hood edge having the upward protruding shape is produced by the metal molds, there is a restriction in resin molding such that demolding is performed by sliding the mold downward along the rear end edge extending part. In other words, according to the prior art, in the case where the hood edge having the upward protruding shape is molded, the front end edge extending part extending rearward cannot be molded because of the restriction in molding with the metal mold. Accordingly, there is a problem in that the shape of the front end edge extending part is restricted to such a shape that the hood edge can be demolded by sliding the mold downward.
On the other hand, as a replacement of the front end edge extending part extending rearward, it may be supposed that the front end edge part is formed on a front side of the hood edge. Also this front end edge part has a shape which can be demolded by sliding the mold downward.
However, it may be required that the engine hood and the front grille forming a vehicle front are flush with each other in relation of adjoining components from designing and aerodynamic viewpoints. Accordingly, when the front end edge extending part is formed in front of the hood edge, this does not meet the design and the aerodynamic requirements requiring that the hood edge and the front grille are flush with each other. Therefore, the front end edge extending part cannot be formed in front of the hood edge due to the design and the aerodynamic restrictions.
The present invention has been developed in consideration of the backgrounds described above and aims to provide a hood edge including the front end edge extending part that can be formed by sliding a piece of the metal mold downward when demolding and a vehicle front structure meeting the design and aerodynamic requirements that the hood edge and the front grille are flush with each other.